GadgetByte Nepal

Xiaomi and Realme have turned the South Asian market into a battleground for mid-range smartphones with their aggressive pricing. Motorola has also joined the fray launching some good mid-range devices in 2021, one of which is the Moto G40 Fusion. It’s also the most affordable smartphone with a Snapdragon 732G processor, at least for now. And in this review, I’ll share my thoughts on the Motorola Moto G40 Fusion and tell you all you need to know about it. So, let’s get started.

Motorola Moto G40 Fusion Specifications:

• Body: 169.6 x 75.9 x 9.7 mm, 225 gm, Water repellant design
• Display: 6.8-inches “Max Vision” IPS LCD, 120Hz, HDR10
• Resolution: FHD+ (1080 x 2460 pixels), 20.5:9 aspect ratio, 396 PPI
• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G 4G (8nm)
• CPU: Octa-core (2×2.3 GHz Kryo 470 Gold & 6×1.8 GHz Kryo 470 Silver)
• GPU: Adreno 618
• Memory: 4/6GB RAM, 64/128GB UFS 2.1 storage (expandable up to 1TB)
• Software & UI: Android 11 with My UX on top
• Rear Camera: Triple-camera;
  – 64MP f/1.7 primary, PDAF
  – 8MP f/2.2 ultrawide, 118º FOV, 2.5cm Macro Vision
  – 2MP f/2.4 depth sensor
• Front Camera: 16MP f/2.2 sensor (punch-hole)
• Security: Physical fingerprint sensor (rear-mounted)
• Audio: 3.5mm headphone jack, loudspeaker
• Sensors: Accelerometer, Gyro, Proximity, Ambient Light, Sensor Hub
• Connectivity: Hybrid Dual-SIM (Nano), Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / AGPS / Glonass / Galileo / LTEPP / SUPL
• Extra: Google Assistant Button, ThinkShield for Mobile
• Battery: 6000mAh with 20W TurboPower
• Price in Nepal: N/A (not launched yet)

Motorola Moto G40 Fusion Review:

Design

• 169.6 x 75.9 x 9.7 mm, 225 gm
• Plastic back/frame, Glass front
• Water repellant design, No IP rating

Ok, the first thing you will notice after picking up this phone is its bulky form factor. It weighs 225 grams and measures 9.5mm, so this is definitely not the lightest and slimmest device in this price range. For this review, I put the Motorola Moto G40 Fusion up against the Realme 8 and the latter is something you can wrap your hand around without experiencing any discomfort.

Anyway, it took me a couple of days to get used to this design. But after then, it’s been pretty comfortable in my hands. Additionally, there are minimal curves around the edges of the rear panel which results in a strong grip while holding the handset.

Now, after flipping the phone, there’s nothing to get hyped about Moto G40’s design. If you think the glossy design is passé, then you may be disheartened with what Motorola’s offering here, as it has a two-tone glossy back. As a result, you’re certain to encounter fingerprints or smudge marks quite easily.

Similarly, there’s a rectangular camera module with a nominal bump, which means the phone wobbles on a level surface. So, to minimize the wobble and to protect it from fingerprints, Motorola ships a transparent protective case inside the box. But, the case further adds to the phone’s thickness.

Not the best in design

Furthermore, the company provides two color options to choose from – Dynamic Grey and Frosted Champagne. As aforementioned, the phone has a 2-tone layout and the Dynamic Grey variant which I have with me brings a greenish accent in the rear camera module. It appears to be a one-of-a-kind approach at first look. But in the long run, I didn’t quite find it blend in with the phone’s glossy design at the back—or maybe it’s the other way around.

For biometrics, there’s a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner just aside from the camera module, which has the batwing-esque Motorola logo. Although the sensor takes a while to read the fingerprint, its accuracy is pretty good. However, as other brands have shifted to a side-mounted sensor nowadays, I wish Motorola joined the fray as well.

Moving on, Moto G40 Fusion includes power, volume, and a dedicated Google Assistant button on the right side. One thing I’d want to point out is that if the assistant button had been positioned independently on the left, it would have made things a lot easier to deal with. That’s because I frequently pressed the assistant button mistaking it for the volume up.

However, to differentiate the assistant button from others, it has a slight curvature design, but that’s unnoticeable and doesn’t make any significant difference. Besides, there’s a 3.5mm audio jack and a microphone on the top while the bottom frame is home to a USB Type-C port, speaker grill, and the primary microphone.

Over on the left, you’ll find a Hybrid SIM tray, which means it enjoys microSD card support too. Not to forget, Moto G40 Fusion features a water-repellant design, which means it should be able to withstand minor water splashes.

Display

• 6.8-inches FHD+ IPS LCD screen, 396 PPI
• 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10

Heading to the display, the Moto G40 Fusion has a 6.8-inch FHD+ IPS LCD panel. On the contrary, similarly-priced phones like the Realme 8 boasts a 6.4-inch Super AMOLED panel. Motorola has traded off an AMOLED screen for a 120Hz refresh rate, and a relatively larger display. The latter makes it a fairly suitable device for those whose priority is content consumption.

Enhancing your video-watching experience is a near-cinematic 20.5:9 aspect ratio, which is something I really appreciate at this price. The display here has good contrast and sharpness and the color-tuning under the saturated preset was perfect for me. Likewise, its outdoor visibility is respectable as well.

However, the real caveat is that this screen is unfit for playing HDR videos on Netflix despite being HDR10 certified. Interestingly, it can totally play HDR videos on YouTube. Still, I could enjoy HD or higher-res videos on Netflix thanks to the Widevine L1 certification that G40 Fusion has.

Moreover, with a 120Hz panel on board, opening up apps and multitasking between them is quite smooth. I didn’t notice any lag during constant scrolling through Google News or Facebook feeds either. Also, you can switch the refresh rate to 60Hz or set it to Auto if you don’t want your battery to be depleted quickly.

Performance

• Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G 4G SoC (8nm)
• 4/6GB RAM, 64/128GB UFS 2.1 storage (expandable up to 1TB)
• Android 11 with Motorola’s My UX on top

Like I mentioned at the beginning of this review, the Motorola Moto G40 Fusion is the cheapest phone powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 732G. Here, I have the 6/128GB memory variant. However, the main selling point or the trump card of any Motorola phone is its near-stock My UX Android interface.

Stock Android means there’s no bloatware, unwanted apps, or random ads. Plus, the company has offered some great customizations like you can twist the device to open up the camera or chop it to turn on the flashlight. In addition, Motorola has also secured the device with ThinkShield protection which protects it from phishing and network attacks. Pretty safe, right?

Yet, this UI does have some issues. Like, after opening the chat in Snap, I literally couldn’t go back easily and I have to repeat the gesture until I am finally out of it. Also, the camera app crashes automatically if it remains open for 2 minutes or so.

Gaming experience

Moving on, if pure performance is what you’re after, then this is the best option to consider in this price bracket. Plus, the phone has a game mode called Gametime which lets you block calls or notifications during your gameplay. Also, there’s this unique feature called “Acoustic Light” which puts a light glow on the four sides of the screen.

Talking about real-time gameplay, PUBG Mobile’s settings max out at HD graphics and High framerate. However, to enjoy the lag-free gameplay I switched back to Smooth graphics and Ultra frame rate, and the match went on smoothly. But, I felt a slight jitteriness after half an hour of gameplay.

A lighter game like Call of Duty renders a lag-free experience in Very High graphics and frame rates. While the smartphone doesn’t get too hot at the back because of its thickness I guess, but I could definitely feel the warmness around the camera module. And, while checking the CPU temperature, it kept fluctuating between 40-43ºC, which isn’t that much of an issue I guess.

Camera

• Triple-camera setup at the back
• (64MP main, 8MP ultra-wide, 2MP depth)
• 16MP selfie camera in the teardrop notch

Going to the camera department, Moto G40 Fusion comes with a triple camera configuration on the back. This consists of a 64MP primary, an 8MP ultrawide, and a 2MP depth sensor. To note, the major differentiating factor between the Moto G40 Fusion and G60 is in the camera department.

That is, the latter gets a 108MP primary sensor at the back and a 32MP selfie camera on the front, while other camera configurations are pretty similar.

Normal Images

I compared the camera of G40 Fusion with Realme 8 and in normal mode, Motorola processes its images to emphasize more on black levels, making them look a bit dark. On the contrary, photos from Reame 8 are brighter and have a better dynamic range. Still, Motorola takes the lead here with good exposure maintenance.

On the surface, both devices capture photos with the same level of sharpness. But when zooming in, things tend to look softer on the Moto G40 Fusion. Likewise, as with most Realme devices, greens come off with excessive vibrance—and lose the natural color-tone.

Ultra-wide Images

While both devices get an 8MP wide-angle lens, photos from the Moto G40 Fusion are superiors in terms of details.

Realme makes its photos pop up in terms of vibrancy. Yet, like the normal mode, the dynamic range is better here.

Portraits Images

As for the portraits, as you can see from these samples, Realme 8 maintains white balance better while Moto outputs its image with a bit of haziness. Furthermore, the skin tone looks pinkish and oversaturated from the Realme 8, while Motorola adds smoothness to the subject. Edge detection, on the other hand, is superior in Moto G40 Fusion.

Macro Images

Now, let’s head to the macro shots. Here, the Moto G40 Fusion captures close-up shots with its ultra-wide lens as it lacks a dedicated macro lens. So, the Realme gets an advantage, at least on paper, with its 2MP macro sensor.

But, the pictures look more vibrant and natural on the G40 Fusion and are well detailed too.

Nighttime Images

The one area where Realme 8 performs significantly better is in the nighttime shots. As evident from these photos, its normal nighttime shots retain more details and processes better HDR.

With the Night mode turned on, from details to dynamic range to vibrancy, every aspect looks good on Realme 8. Additionally, the lens flare is more pronounced in the G40 Fusion, while in the Realme 8’s image, the flare isn’t that noticeable.

Selfies

Moving on to the selfies, the details from both the phones turn out to be similar. However, the ones from the Moto G40 Fusion look smooth, have a slight pinkish tinge, and the colors look a bit muted as well. Instead, Realme’s image looks punchy and has better dynamic range and exposure.

The same is true with portrait selfies. Motorola loses the inning as the pictures lack dynamic range, whereas the Realme 8 captures images with better edge detection and details.

Videos

On the videography side, both phones can record up to 4K 30fps videos. But, Motorola has a significant advantage here, as it gets the stabilization option even in the 4K/30fps mode. So, as you can guess, videos look a lot more stable from the G40 Fusion. Similarly, FHD videos at 30fps repeat the same story. Although both devices get a stabilization option in this mode, the output is steadier on the Moto G40 Fusion.

However, when shooting FHD videos at 60fps, the G40 Fusion struggles to focus on the subject after few seconds of recording, while there was no such issue with the Realme 8. Over on the selfie videos, the latter captures videos with a better skin tone, even though the stabilization is once again better on Moto G40.

Battery

• 6000mAh battery with 20W TurboPower charging

There’s no joke when it comes to the battery life of Moto G40 Fusion. The device packs a big 6000mAh battery, and on my normal usage, its battery life extended to well beyond a day and a half. In fact, if you don’t click that power button quite often, you could quite possibly end up with up to 2 days of battery life.

However, with my practical usages, like 1-2 hours of gaming, 3-4 hours of content consumption, and other regular tasks, the phone survived till the end of the day with 20% battery remaining.

Despite such amazing battery life, one disappointing factor is the charging speed. The phone takes nearly 2 hours and 30 minutes to fully charge with its 20W adapter. So, make sure to go to nap before putting it on charge. Jokes aside, the interesting thing here is its big brother gets the same 20W adapter. So, I guess there’s no room for complaining.

Audio

• Bottom-firing mono speaker

Getting to the audio, Moto G40 Fusion comes with a single bottom-firing speaker. Although it’s a mono speaker setup, it’s quite loud, unless you’re downgrading from a stereo speaker setup. Similarly, the earpiece sound quality isn’t that great here. It works absolutely well in a fairly quiet area, such as an indoor room. But when I’m outdoors, I had to activate the speaker. So, call quality felt a little disappointing to me.

Motorola Moto G40 Fusion Review: Conclusion

Summing up this review, if you’re specifically targeting a device under the INR 15,000 price range, the Motorola Moto G40 Fusion features a shortcoming in one area or another. With this phone, you get a bulky and unattractive design. However, its clean stock software is something Android users would love unless they want some extravagant skins on top of it like MIUI or ColorOS.

Furthermore, you also get a long-lasting battery, a powerful processor, and a few other features that make it a worthy option to choose from. But, if you care about a good AMOLED panel, rather than a stock-ish Android experience, there are a bunch of other good options to spend your cash on.

Motorola Moto G40 Fusion Review: Pros & Cons

Pros:

• Ergonomic build quality
• Smooth, vibrant 120Hz screen
• ThinkShield protection for mobile
• Good performance with SD 732G
• Optimized My UX
• Admirable battery endurance

Cons:

• No AMOLED panel
• Bulky and glossy design
• Cameras require further optimization
• Hybrid SIM slot

In this review, I’ll be discussing the Motorola Moto G60. As we know, the company takes pride in the clean, stock Android experience in its phones. While that’s certainly a crucial advantage to have at one’s side, a great smartphone should excel at other key areas like design, display, and cameras as well.

Yet, the company is pretty behind when it comes to delivering a well-balanced smartphone—at least when considering the price and competition. Well, to find out if Motorola Moto G60 succeed in this regard, I took it for a spin alongside Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 10 Pro for a couple of weeks, and I’ll be sharing my thoughts about the former in this review.

Motorola Moto G60 Specifications:

• Body: 169.6 x 75.9 x 9.8 mm, 225 gm, Water-repellent design
• Display: 6.8-inches “Max Vision” IPS LCD, 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10
• Resolution: FHD+ (1080 x 2460 pixels), 20.5:9 aspect ratio, 396PPI
• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G 4G (8nm)
• CPU: Octa-core (2×2.3 GHz Kryo 470 Gold & 6×1.8 GHz Kryo 470 Silver)
• GPU: Adreno 618
• Memory: 6GB RAM, 128GB UFS 2.1 storage (expandable up to 1TB)
• Software & UI: Android 11 with Motorola’s My UX on top
• Rear Camera: Triple-camera;
  – 108MP f/1.7 ISOCELL HM2 primary sensor, PDAF
  – 8MP f/2.2 ultrawide, 118º FOV, 2.5cm Macro Vision
  – 2MP f/2.4 depth sensor
• Front Camera: 32MP f/2.2 sensor (punch-hole)
• Security: Physical fingerprint sensor (rear-mounted)
• Audio: 3.5mm headphone jack, loudspeaker
• Sensors: Accelerometer, Gyro, Proximity, Ambient Light, Sensor Hub
• Connectivity: Hybrid Dual-SIM (Nano), Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / AGPS / Glonass / Galileo / LTEPP / SUPL, NFC, USB Type-C
• Extra: Google Assistant Button, ThinkShield for Mobile
• Color Options: Dynamic Grey, Frosted Champagne
• Battery: 6000mAh with 20W TurboPower
• Price in Nepal: N/A (not launched yet)

Motorola Moto G60 Review:

Design & Build

• 169.6 x 75.9 x 9.8 mm, 225 gm
• Plastic back/frame, Glass front
• Water repellant design

Starting this review with the design, the Motorola Moto G60 is for those who’re looking for a capable content consumption device rather than something that’s compact and enjoys a universal fit. Thus, if you’re used to lightweight phones, its big and bulky form-factor is destined to be uncomfortable.

Keeping it side by side with the Note 10 Pro, the Moto G60 is wider and comparatively heavier. Weighing 225 grams (plus a couple of grams more with the silicone case), I must say it took me a couple of days to get used to the phone.

But after a while, I found holding it to be quite comfortable, thanks to its ergonomic design. Further aiding this cause is Moto G60’s curved back design. Still and all, because this is a big phone, using it one-handed is a definite struggle for someone with small hands like me.

Inferior all-plastic build

Anyway, Motorola lets you pick between Dynamic Grey and Frosted Champagne color options. And while Xiaomi offers a dual-glass body on the Note 10 Pro, Motorola disappoints with a typical all-plastic construction that we’re used to on budget phones. Plus, with its glossy finish, the company is axing its own feet.

Since this finish attracts fingerprints and smudges by a ton, I will strongly suggest you put on a case/wrap on the Moto G60. The back of the phone also hosts a rectangular camera module with a unique turquoise finish. You can notice a physical fingerprint reader with the classic Motorola logo embedded into it.

While my index finger naturally reached out to the sensor (only after few days of use), I still wished it was positioned a little lower. However, for a mid-range phone, I can’t complain about the unlock speed or accuracy.

Crammed button placement

Additionally, you can trigger the notification panel with a swipe gesture too, which comes in quite handy. The Moto G60 supports 2D face unlock as well, although it’s rather sluggish, taking an average of 2 seconds to work. Moving on, there’s a power, volume, and Google Assistant button on the right frame of the device.

Interestingly, the power button enjoys tiny nudges for easy recognition. Even though I don’t have a problem with the tactile feedback of either of these buttons, as you could probably tell, I am bothered by the placement of the Google Assistant button.

Non-customizable Google Assistant button

Motorola could’ve easily relocated it to the left, but for some reason, it’s chosen to render the button’s usability to a minimum. As a result, instead of going for a dedicated button, I often found myself using the voice command or the home screen shortcut to access the voice assistant.

Even more disappointingly, Motorola doesn’t let you set custom actions for this button, and a third-party app is unable to do so either. Besides this, Moto G60’s top frame includes a headphone jack and a microphone while the bottom portion brings a USB-C port, a speaker grille, and a primary microphone.

Finally, you’ll find the Hybrid SIM tray on the left which has been complemented by a rugger gasket to prevent water/moisture from getting in. That reminds me—Moto G60 boasts a water repellent design although the company hasn’t bothered for an official IP rating. So, this phone should survive under light drizzles or water splashes.

Display

• 6.8-inches FHD+ IPS LCD screen, 396 PPI
• 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10 certified

Okay, let’s now get on to the display. Bringing the Note 10 Pro to the mix once again, Motorola’s offering lags behind in this department as well. This AMOLED vs LCD battle is over before it begins.

Still, as I mentioned earlier, Moto G60 is a decent option for those with video streaming in mind—someone who’s constantly on Facebook or watching videos on YouTube, TikTok, and such. To be clear, this conclusion is solely based on the phone’s large display.

More specifically, the Moto G60 has a massive 6.8” IPS LCD screen. Motorola calls it “Max Vision” and has implemented a near-cinematic 20.5:9 aspect ratio here. As a result, watching movies and such results is a pretty pleasant experience since there’s not much letterbox to account for.

While we’re on the subject of content consumption, this is also an HDR10-certified screen. So, you will be able to enjoy rich blacks and brighter brights on compatible videos. I noticed that watching HDR videos on YouTube results in a mild warm tone even though there’s nothing wrong with the playback quality itself.

Still, to my dismay, I found out that the phone can’t play HDR contents on Netflix. It is Widevine L1 certified for HD playback but no dice with HDR videos. Because this is something that can be fixed with a quick OTA hotfix, I’m hoping that Motorola will provide an update that addresses this issue soon.

Not so bright outdoors

Regardless, because this is a Full HD screen, I didn’t face any problem with the screen’s sharpness. Indoor visibility is plenty sufficient, which extends to cloudy outdoors too. But of course, Moto G60 does struggle to maintain sufficient illumination when you’re under direct sunlight.

Furthermore, in the default “Natural” display profile, I found that the colors tend to look slightly warm. Switching to the “Saturated” mode, things look better with decent white balance—although having the option to play around with color temperature settings as on MIUI devices would’ve been even better.

Likewise, following the 2021 smartphone trend, Motorola has included a 120Hz refresh rate support on the Moto G60. What’s even more impressive is that I couldn’t notice micro-lags or stutters when using this phone under the 120Hz mode, unlike Xiaomi and POCO’s mid-rangers.

So, whether you’re scrolling through Facebook, Chrome, or browsing through the UI, everything feels smooth here. Under the display settings, you can also enable auto-refresh rate, which automatically adjusts between 60 and 120Hz depending on the content.

Performance

• Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G 4G SoC (8nm)
• 6GB RAM, 128GB UFS 2.1 storage (expandable up to 1TB)
• Android 11 with Motorola’s My UX on top

Despite the comparatively sub-par display, Moto G60 delivers pretty great results when it comes to performance. Like the Redmi Note 10 Pro, this is also powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 732G. However, Motorola only offers a single memory configuration of this phone—with 6GB RAM and 128GB UFS 2.1 storage.

As aforementioned, you’re getting a stock Android experience on this phone which might’ve already piqued the interest of many Android enthusiasts. From the fairly well-optimized UI/UX to the ad-less operating system, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time with the Moto G60.

I also compared its performance with the Redmi Note 10 Pro to see how they differ. Multitasking between 10 lightweight to relatively demanding apps, the G60 took 56 seconds on average while the Note 10 Pro was slower by 6-7 seconds most of the time. To note, we have the 6GB RAM variant of both these phones.

Multi-tasking with ease

Apart from the tardiness, the Note 10 Pro lags behind in terms of effectively keeping apps in memory too. In the same multitasking test, the phone had to reload Spotify and Messenger whereas the G60 was able to keep Spotify in memory. With all this, it’s fair to conclude that Motorola’s My UX is objectively better optimized than Xiaomi’s MIUI.

Despite being a mid-range phone, I was quite content with Moto G60’s performance as it handled my everyday usage with almost zero problems. Popularized by Vivo, smartphone makers these days tend to throw big numbers with their “Extended RAM” feature.

Although My UX lacks an exact substitute, you will find something called “Adaptive Performance” on the Moto G60. According to the company, turning it on will aid in effective RAM allocation by using AI. It might also be one of the reasons for my satisfactory multitasking experience on this phone.

Benchmarks:

For added security, Motorola ships Moto G60 with “ThinkShield” security found in its parent company Lenovo’s laptops. There’s no exact way to know how or when this feature is active but Motorola says it’ll keep your phone safe from security threats like malware, phishing, and network attacks.

Now, even though I enjoy a stock Android UI, having a couple of helpful customization features is always a good thing—and something that saves My UX from being monotonous. Apart from the classic “chop” and “twist” gestures, I’m fond of the features like Peek Display, Audio Effects, and Gametime too.

Gaming experience 

With the latter, you can block calls/notifications, record/cast screen, and so much more. “Acoustic Light” is another interesting feature here. Under compatible games like PUBG and COD Mobile, it mimics in-game SFX to indicate where the enemy is firing from and such with a light glow on the four edges of the screen.

Talking about gaming, you can play PUBG Mobile smoothly under Balanced graphics and Ultra frame rate. But if you wish for a better visual enhancement, you can push it to Smooth graphics although I found the phone’s temperature getting comparatively higher under this.

After 30+ minutes of gaming, I clocked its CPU and battery temperature to be around 40ºC and 37ºC, respectively. Likewise, COD Mobile renders a lag-free gaming experience in High graphics/Max frame rate or Very High graphics and Very High frame rate.

With 240Hz of touch sampling rate on board, I couldn’t notice any delay in touch response either. Plus, 120Hz-optimized games like Critical Ops deliver smooth 120fps gameplay under High details.

Cameras

• Triple-camera setup at the back
• (108MP main, 8MP ultra-wide, 2MP depth)
• 32MP selfie camera in the teardrop notch

Let’s now get into the cameras. Moto G60, like the Note 10 Pro, includes Samsung’s 108MP ISOCELL HM2 sensor. Completing its triple-camera setup is an 8MP ultrawide and a 2MP depth sensor.

Normal Images

Here, in normal daytime images, I noticed that these phones primarily differed in terms of color tone. While G60 settles for a mild yellowish tint, you can notice photos from the Note 10 Pro to have a slight reddish hue.

They’re quite similar in terms of dynamic range but oftentimes, the Note 10 Pro retains low black levels and contrast. The high-detailed 108MP shots from both phones are rather indistinguishable though.

Unfortunately, Moto G60’s camera app gave up on me on multiple occasions when I tried clicking 108MP photos. To get everything working again, I had to clear the app’s storage data.

Additionally, it shows a camera error when attempting to shoot 1080p/60fps videos—with the aforementioned solution working on this instance too. So, I really hope Motorola pushes an update fixing the camera stability issue quite soon.

Ultra-wide Images

Moving on, Note 10 Pro’s low contrast streak continues on the wide-angle images as well.

Nonetheless, it does manage to retain better exposure and highlights. Additionally, ultra-wide shots from Moto G60 are ridiculously over-sharpened.

Portrait Images

Coming to the portraits, the dynamic range and exposure control are superior on the Note 10 Pro while the G60 comes out victorious in regards to edge detection.

Plus, subjects look relatively reddish on the Note 10 Pro.

Macro Images

Now, while Moto G60 doesn’t have a dedicated macro sensor, its wide-angle camera shoots close-up shots.

To compare, macro photos from Moto G60 look comparatively more vibrant although they’re similar in terms of details.

Selfies Images

I’m also fond of selfie images from the Moto G60 with its superior dynamic range and well-maintained black levels.

Yet, the Note 10 Pro does recover when it comes to portrait shots since it manages impressive exposure control with decent dynamic range.

But just like the regular portrait shots, subjects look reddish here whereas the G60 has better edge detection too. Having said that, there is a noticeable yellowish tint on the portrait selfies from G60.

Nighttime Images

Getting to the nighttime images, the Note 10 Pro manages better HDR and exposure control most of the time.

With sufficient lighting, the Moto G60 takes superior photos when turning on night mode—while it falls behind under extreme low-lighting situations.

Having said that, both these phones are prone to rabid lens flare, although it’s less so on the G60.

Videography

On to the video side of things, either of these phones can shoot up to 4K/30fps footage. Even though videos come off jittery from the G60, it is way steadier. Because of the camera crash issue I mentioned earlier, I couldn’t compare the 1080p/60fps modes between them.

Anyway, the 1080p/30fps are similar from both devices—be it in terms of details or stabilization. You can shoot under the same resolution from the wide-angle camera too. Here, the G60 retains the jitteriness while also introducing a slight greenish tint.

Upfront, selfie videos are capped to 1080p/30fps. Moto G60’s greenish hue continues in this regard while it also has a narrower field of view. On the contrary, Note 10 Pro brings the classic reddish look. Interestingly, the G60 also supports 1080p/60fps videos although the FOV is extremely narrow.

Battery

• 6000mAh battery with 20W TurboPower charging

Equipping a massive 6000mAh battery, I’m thoroughly impressed with Moto G60’s battery endurance. Under lightweight to medium usage, I managed to get a solid 10 hours of screen-on time. This consisted of setting the refresh rate to auto and brightness to around 50%.

Throwing a couple of gaming sessions into the mix, the G60 still manages an immaculate 8 hours of SOT.

Motorola’s official claim reads 54 hours of endurance while my test concludes that this is easily a two-day phone. Unfortunately, the Moto G60 juices up rather slow. Using the Quick Charge 4.0 compatible 20W power adapter, it takes about 2 hours and 25 minutes on average to take this phone from 0 to 100%.

Audio

• Bottom-firing mono speaker

Like the charging speed, G60’s audio quality leaves things to be desired as well. At a time when the competition like the Note 10 Pro offers a stereo speaker setup, Motorola has gone with a simple bottom-firing mono speaker here. While it is fairly loud, it does not provide the same degree of immersive music experience as the Note 10 Pro’s speakers.

Regardless, I do prefer the stronger haptic feedback on the G60. Apart from this, its call quality is perfectly fine and I had no issues with the proximity sensor either.

Motorola Moto G60 Review: Conclusion

Wrapping up this review, the Motorola Moto G60 has wowed me with its stock Android experience and top-notch battery endurance. Despite this, it falls behind when it comes to other fundamental pillars of a great smartphone, like design and display.

Even disregarding the plastic build quality, G60’s bulky form factor is an easy turn-off for many. And, as I’ve demonstrated throughout this review, the LCD screen and mono speaker on Motorola Moto G60 are no match for the Note 10 Pro’s AMOLED panel and stereo speakers.

Overall, Motorola could have done a lot better to make the G60 a competitive contender in the mid-range smartphone market. So if you don’t care much about the stock Android experience, this shouldn’t be on the top of your top choice.

Motorola Moto G60 Review: Pros & Cons

Pros:

• Water-repellent build quality
• Smooth 120Hz refresh rate
• Stock Android experience
• Impressive multitasking
• Helpful customization options
• Can shoot fairly stable videos
• Exceptional battery endurance

Cons:

• Not the best value for money
• Big and bulky design
• Unattractive glossy finish
• Lacks an AMOLED panel
• Unoptimized camera app
• 20W charging is pretty slow
• Lacks a stereo speaker setup